Dragon's Reign
by ZmajGoddess
Summary: The name is Duo, Duo Maxwell if you please; and this is my story, its not the nicest, but it's got royalty, princes, loyal friends, adventure, and most importantly DRAGONS...
1. Duo and Solo are born

Dragon's Reign  
  
Hopefully this won't get to confusing for people. So I'll explain it here. This is Duo's story. He is telling it. The POV is going to switch from Duo telling the story to him REMEMBERING what happened. Does that make sense? It might happen suddenly. Well, if it gets to confusing, let me know and I'll try my best to explain it for you.  
  
BTW I unfortunately don't own the G-boys; if I did I would be much happier, wallowing in money. But I don't so don't bother suing; I don't have anything, I'm a poor college student people! Unless of course you want a couple blood thirsty dust bunnies....I got plenty of those. Comments are always appreciated....craved actually. REVIEWS!!! I NEED REVIEWS. Uh...sorry....I'm ok now. So please, review; let me know what you liked, what you didn't, the good, the bad and the ugly basically. However flames will be laughed at, so I wouldn't even bother.  
  
Prologue:  
  
Misery. That basically summed up the beginning of my life, absolute misery. First I was stuck being a peasant, then a 'vagabond', then an orphan vagabond, and then a slave. My life sucked. I seem to be getting ahead of myself. The name is Duo, Duo Maxwell if you will. Not that anyone really cares about my last name, hell they don't care 'bout my first name. "Hey boy!" or "Slave!" works just fine for these folks. How did I become a slave, you ask? Heh, funny story that, kinda long too, you sure you got the time? Oh, you do? Drat....well I guess I'll tell ya; though it ain't to pretty. My folks were born as peasants in the Kingdom of Sanc. Nice place really, right next to the ocean and all. We lived out in the country, my folks and me had a lil' cottage set next to the forest at the base of the mountains. It was peaceful, pleasant place. We were poor, but content for the most part. Everyone in our lil' village knew each other, we were all basically family. All was wonderful, at least to my twelve year old little eyes it was.  
  
That is, until the raiders came.  
  
There had been no way of knowing when they came; we had no way of defending ourselves. We were a peaceful village. Granted the adults and many of the children too, armed themselves with pitchforks and other farm equipment, but it hadn't been enough. The raider's slaughtered my village, not leaving a man, woman, or child alive. Hell they even killed our livestock. You're probably asking yourself, how could they have killed everyone, when you're still alive....am I right? Thought so. You see, that horrid night, I had been in the cellar when the village had been attacked. When my mother realized what was happening, she barred the doors, trapping me inside the cellar, thus saving my skin. However, I had been cursed with amazingly good hearing, so I heard what was going on above me, and my mind conjured up all sorts of horrid scenes. I tucked myself into one of the dark corners of the cellar, and tried my best to hide. I became very good at hiding.... I don't know how long I waited down there in the cellar, praying to the Gods that everything would be alright. But, there were no Gods out and about that night, only the god of Death.  
  
I eventually fell asleep, wrapped in the cold safety the darkness of the cellar provided. When I finally woke, I woke to the sound of things crashing, and pounding noises. I didn't move; I didn't know who the hell was out there. Was it my mother trying to get back to me? Or was it a raider who was looting my village? I didn't know. So I didn't say anything. Finally,  
  
"Is anyone here!?!" a voice called, the voice was disoriented, but it sounded familiar. As quietly as I could I moved to the door of he cellar. There I stopped; I crouched next to it, listening to see if the voice would speak again.  
  
"Hello!?!" The voice called. It was definitely familiar. My heart skipped a beat...someone else had survived! Yet, years of living on the outskirts of a forest had taught me caution, and these instincts reigned in my excitement. For all I know, I could be a trick. I gently put pressure against the door; it only gave a bit; but it was enough for a scrawny brat like me to slip through. As silent as the shadows I had spent the night in, I slipped through the ruined buildings; seeking the person calling.  
  
"HELLO!?!?!?!" The voice called again, it had a desperate edge to it.  
  
I peeked around the corner of what use to be the tavern stable wall, standing there in the middle of the town square, just as dirty and sooty as me, was my best friend and shield sibling, Jared. He looked scarred, sad, and furious all at the same time. His normal blonde hair was dark with soot, making his golden eyes seem to glow.  
  
"Is anyone else alive?" he had said softly. I don't know what it was; relief, fear, the look in his eyes, or those words, but I threw caution to the wind and ran towards him  
  
"Jared!" I called, and threw myself into his arms. We didn't care that it wasn't proper for men to show emotion, much less hold each other; but we didn't care, we were just happy that we weren't alone. "Tristan; Gods I was so scarred that I was the only one left, that they had gotten all of you." He whispered, burying his face in my thick hair. No, my name wasn't always Duo, now hush and let me finish... We stood like that for a long time, taking comfort from each others presence. Finally we pulled away; there was work still to be done; we had to bury the dead. That particular ugly task took until night fall, we gathered as many of our family and friends as we could find, some were under to much rubble and beyond our reach; others there just wasn't enough left. That night, however, we preformed the death rites of our town. We sang the songs of death, and danced the Path to the Gates. Then we lit the bodies on fire, and continued with the dance long into the night.  
  
When we finally ended, the Rites of Passage complete; Jared and I stood in silence and watched the fire burn away all we ever knew.  
  
"There's nothing left for us here." I said, the heat from the fire doing nothing to chase away the chill in my soul.  
  
"No, we can not live here by ourselves. We can travel to the city, try and find our way there?"  
  
I nodded in agreement. "But how will we get by? We have nothing...hell to most people, we ARE nothing."  
  
"We will find a way." Jared said, smiling, and then the smile faded, "We're starting a new life, Jared and Tristan the farmboys are no longer who we are."  
  
"No, they were innocent, untouched by death." I agree, feeling far older then my twelve years. Maybe our souls had aged, no one as young as us had ever preformed the Rites of Passage, much less have done it alone.  
  
"We should take new names." Jared said, he thought a moment, "When I crawled out of the rubble, I thought that I was the only one here, I was so sure that everyone was gone, and I would be left alone, like I was all those years ago. I think I shall be Solo."  
  
I put my hand on my friends shoulder, "But you're not alone. You haven't been since you arrived here."  
  
"No, you were always there."  
  
"And I shall always be there. Because of that, I shall be Duo."  
  
Solo smiled, "Duo to my Solo, hm? I like it" Long ago when I had first met Jared, we had preformed the ritual of becoming Shield siblings. Basically it was a blood-bonding ceremony, where you make a shallow cut diagonal across your palm and then clasp hands with the person who is becoming your partner. It was a powerful bond; perhaps that is why the gods spared us. Who knows?  
  
And so Solo and Duo Maxwell were born. And they were heading for the big city to wreck some havoc. 


	2. Theives until the end

Chapter 1  
  
I crouched in the shadows of the alley, hidden from all but the most experienced of eyes. The city was dark, but no where near quiet. There were people moving to and fro all over the place. At least to someone who lived on these streets they were busy. Most people stayed off the streets at night, which was when all the 'bad people' came out, as I heard one lady call us. Whatever floats their boat. Solo and I were planning for a big lift at a really nice house. Hence why I was lurking in the shadows.  
  
There was an ever so slight swish of cloth behind me. I whirled, knives coming up into a defensive position.  
  
"Duo." Solo said. That one word, just my name, that's all. I grinned at him, relaxing instantly, the knives disappearing as fast as they had appeared; seeming to vanish into thin air. At the ripe old age of fourteen and fifteen, Solo and I were renowned for our fighting skills. "Maxwell's Demons" were what the locals called us, after the kind priest who had taken us in and helped us. We couldn't live at the church; neither of us could stand being taken care of after being on our own for a year and a half. And the fact that we couldn't bring ourselves to push ourselves upon the kind priest and his assistant. Even though they insisted that it wasn't a problem, we had seen how poor they were, the church could not afford to feed one much less two rapidly growing boys, especially with their destructive nature.  
  
"There's a party goin' on." Solo reported, coming to crouch in the shadows with me. Quickly he described the layout of the building and the land. Sounded simple enough.  
  
"There isn't that much security for such a large party...don't ya think?" I asked the hair on the back of my neck starting to rise; something wasn't right. I knew it.  
  
"That concerned me as well. There weren't any dogs that I saw, nor did the charms pick up any magical energies." Solo said, looking at me. Instantly I knew he felt it too. It was an instinct, born from living on our own for so long; we knew the feel of danger. And that house seemed like a trap.  
  
"We don't really have a choice. We need that lift. That stone will give us enough to live on, as well as give some to the church. They won't be here after this..."  
  
"I know, I know." I said, taking a deep breath, trying to calm myself. We had done over a hundred lifts since coming to the city. We were the best....  
  
"I still don't like it." I muttered, as I jumped noiselessly to the ground.  
  
"Nor do I" Solo whispered in reply, following my lead. We crept across the grounds, two silent shadows. Ducking into an alley between to of the main building, Solo and I pressed ourselves to the wall.  
  
'Go in from the window? Or get into the room by the inside?'I asked Solo, using the hand signs we had developed.  
  
'Go inside, window is too high to get into, also it's spelled' Was the reply. I nodded, and slipped into the serving quarters. Luckily all the servants were busy in the kitchen. The trip up to the room was simple, if not tedious. They passed almost no one on the way up. There were no near missed, no guards, there weren't even servants wandering about! A common thief would allow such luck to go to his head and become over confident....Solo and I were not common thieves. Nor did we believe that this was luck. The entire thing stunk of TRAP!! Yet there was nothing they could do about it. This is what the thief lords had told them to do, thus this is what had to be done. They didn't want to know the consequences of failure.  
  
They stood in front of the door that held the Stone. It was a large oak door covered in complex intricate designs. The hair on my arms stood on end. "It's magic isn't it?" I whispered, softly. Solo held out their pendent to detect magic, it didn't react. "Guess not." Solo replied, looking at the door uncertainly. I was no fool, I don't care what any stupid trinket said; I KNEW magic when I saw it, and that door was magiked. Solo stepped forward, and began to pick the lock. Oddly enough, the lock clicked fairly quickly, and swung open on silent hinges. Absently I began to finger my knives. Something was definitely NOT right. Slowly we edged into the room. TH very air in there was tense. There sitting on a silk cushion in a glass case, was the stone we were supposed to lift. Slowly, we crept closer; I stepped forward, gently lifting the glass covering from the stone. I reached into my side bag and wrapped my fingers around a second Stone, a copy so that the owners wouldn't notice it was gone. At the same time, I wrapped my fingers around the true Stone. Suddenly the door slammed and torches flared to life.  
  
"Well, well, what have we here mates?" Droned the captain of the guard, Raoul. "A couple of thieves, it seems." His second in command said in a smug growl. I don't know who moved first, them or us. They lunged; both Solo and I dove for the window. Solo leapt out, I followed. Pain flared in my head.  
  
"Where do you think you're going lassie." One of the guards growled. The bastard had ahold of my braid! I snarled, and did the only thing I could. I drew my dagger, and sliced through my braid. I plummeted to the ground; I hit and rolled, absorbing some of the impact, then I was on my feet and running. Solo and I didn't look behind us, though we heard the baying of the hounds; nor did we slow down until we reached Stormwing Forest. Even then, we were deep in the forest before we slowed. We rested next to a large twisted oak tree; we were next to a lake. The water reflected the pale orange gleam of the moon like a mirror. This was our safe house of sorts; we came here to get away from city life, and to hide from the authorities.  
  
"Well that didn't go well." Solo growled, "The Stone will be twice as hard to grab next time." I laughed. "What's so funny? Have you gone daft? Or forgotten what is at stake?!"  
  
"We don't need to go back into the place, bro." I said still snickering, I opened the fist that I had had clenched tight the entire way. The Stone glowed a dull red against my pale skin.  
  
"Duo, you are magnificent!" Solo cried.  
  
"Now we wait for things to cool down, and give that damnedable stone to the lords." I said, smiling.  
  
"No."  
  
"Say again?" I asked, giving him a puzzling look.  
  
"No" He repeated, "Especially not since they sicced the guard on us."  
  
"What are you goin' on 'bout?" I asked; what the hell was he talking about?  
  
"Think back, the small guy standing next to Raoul in the shadows. It was Quinten, I'm sure of it. I would know that slug anywhere." Now that I thought about it. He was right; Quinten HAD been standing behind Raoul, hidden by the shadows. I growled, "The bastards!"  
  
We stayed in the forest for five days, the hunt nearly finding us several time. And there seemed to be no end of them. Around the fifth day, Solo had an epiphany. "Duo, do you still have that fake stone?"  
  
"Yeah." I said, fishing the copy out of my bag. He grinned; then sobered. "You know they will eventually find us." He stated. I nodded; I knew this. There was no avoiding it. "So let's cause some serious mischief before we leave, what do you say?"  
  
There was a dangerous glint in Solo's eye, one I knew well; I was the look he got right before he did something evil and outrageous; and normally incredibly stupid. I felt myself grinning in reply. Quickly Solo outlined the details of his plan, I laughed a loud. It was perfect! Solo proposed that we hide the true Stone deep in Stormwing forest, where only we would know; then we would go face their fate, it was inevitable. We would meet the Thief Lords and hand over the false stone, and if our predictions were correct, the city guards would be waiting for them. It was a wonderfully stupid plan; but equally mischievous. The Thief Lord would be furious! There was no way out of Sanc; we were going to be eventually caught. At least this way, we would be going out our way.  
  
Everything was set, on the morning of the sixth day. They returned to the city.  
  
We waited until night fall to actually slip into the tunnels under the city. As we moved past, I could hear the occasional rustle of cloth; indicating that the scouts we're reporting to the thief lord. Most likely, when we arrived, it would be much like the nobles Stone room; the guards would jump us from behind.  
  
WE made good time to the Lord's Throne room; the other thieves cleared a path for us, scurrying out of our way as we breezed by. An arrogant person might think that they feared us; while that is true to a certain extent; that was not the reason they moved. We were dead men walking. They all knew it, and not a damned one of them warned us. How utterly predictable.  
  
The Thief Lords throne room was a large sewer tunnel; his throne was a large pipe that stuck out of the side of the wall. The Lord himself was dressed in royal green; a handsome creature to be sure. Until you look at his cold dead grey eyes. I forced up my normal cheerful smile.  
  
"Mornin' Lordy." I said, cheerfully. The tall youth narrowed his eyes at me. The room was dark except for the few torches that flickered around the throne.  
  
"Do you have it?" The Lord asked his voice as cold and flat as a stone slab.  
  
"Yeah, we have it." Solo said, grinning like a fool. "It was easier then we thought; though there were a bunch of guards there waitin'....."  
  
"You seem unscathed." The Lord commented. "Now give me the artifact."  
  
Solo pulled out the false stone I had created; he tossed it into the air. "What this thing?" Solo asked and evil glint in his golden eyes. "With all the trouble we went through to get it, Lord; the price as tripled." The Thief Lord glared at Solo, grey eyes flashing with anger. Any fool could see that we were treading on thin ice; but then again, we were dead men, so what did it matter?  
  
"Fine." The Lord growled, "Now hand it over." Solo shrugged and tossed the Stone to the Thief Lord. The Lord looked at the Stone for a couple seconds then began laughing; it was a dark evil laugh that made a chill run up my spine. "SEIZE THEM!" The Lord commanded. Light filled the room, revealing the Guard that had been in the Nobles house a week ago. Damn, I hate being right! I thought. Solo and I smiled pleasantly at the men.  
  
"I always wondered how long it would take you to win over this dog..." Solo purred to the Thief Lord. I laughed; "I always knew you was a sell out Lordy..."  
  
The guards seized us. WE tried to fight; but it was thirty against two. So we didn't make much head way. Not a big surprise really. Though we did leave our mark on them; that's for damned sure.  
  
"Damned mongrels" the Captain growled. "I know exactly where I'm gonna put the two of you....maybe you'll even be able to keep your hands...since the buyer I have doesn't much care for damaged goods."  
  
Property? Damaged goods? I looked at Solo...Uh oh...  
  
~*~  
  
Alright folks that's all I have so far.....should I continue? Did anyone like?? REVIEW!! REVIEW!! Please. 


	3. THe Dream

I unfortunately don't own the G-boys; if I did I would be much happier, wallowing in money. But I don't so don't bother suing; I don't have anything, I'm a poor college student people! Unless of course you want a couple blood thirsty dust bunnies....I got plenty of those. Comments are always appreciated....craved actually. REVIEWS!!! I NEED REVIEWS. Uh...sorry....I'm ok now. So please, review; let me know what you liked, what you didn't, the good, the bad and the ugly basically. However flames will be laughed at, so I wouldn't even bother.  
  
As I said before, I hate being right! That "I know exactly where I'm going to put you two..." was right onto a ship owned by a rich merchant, as a slave. I sat in my corner of the slave ship. It was small, dark, damp and rat infested. Also it was crowded. Have I mentioned that I'm slightly claustrophobic?? And on top of that, my back was afire from the thirty lashings I had received, earlier in the day. I had not done what my new master had wanted me to. And I will NOT mention what it was he wanted me to do. Lets just say that the Thief Lord had played his own little trick. He had not only sold us into slavery, he had sold us as PLEASURE slaves. I growled low in my throat, and concentrated on the movement of the ship.  
  
"How are you feeling?" a quiet voice from the shadows on my right asked. I didn't have to look to know who it was. The small slave next to me had become sort of a teacher to Solo and me in the ways of being a slave. Not that he had much experience; the merchant had picked him up a few monthes before us on their last stop. The merchant liked him because of his "exotic" look. Which was true, the boy was exotic looking. He was well built, with golden skin long black shoulder length hair that he kept tied back in a tail and he had bright onyx eyes. He moved with the grace of a large cat.  
  
"Peachy." I whispered, "How 'bout you Wufei?" Wufei snorted. I glanced around, Solo wasn't anywhere near me. "Where's Solo, 'Fei?'  
  
Wufei grimaced, "With HIM" he growled, spitting the word 'him' as if it was poison. I closed my eyes and prayed to the Gods that he would be alright.  
  
The Gods chose to ignore my plea.  
  
Solo was returned later that night, unconscious.  
  
"Solo!" I said in a fierce whisper as soon as the guards left. Solo lay on the floor, unmoving. I moved slowly over to my brother, trying my best not to rattle the chains. I touched him on the shoulder, and he flinched. Solo flinched from me... "Solo? Bro...talk to me." Solo turned away from me, curling into a ball. He was covered in cuts and bruises..... "Bro...What did he do to you....?" I whispered. Something shiny ran down Solo's cheek...a tear? Solo was c-crying? Solo NEVER cried! He didn't cry when his family was murdered in front of him, he didn't cry when his town was destroyed, he didn't cry when he was beaten an inch from death.... "What happened?" I growled into my brother's ear, glaring at any who looked our way. Solo didn't reply. I grabbed Solo's shoulder and forced him onto his back so he was looking at me. "What. Happened." I growled again. Solo looked up at me, his golden eyes were frightened, and ashamed. Suddenly my elder brother curled into a ball again, burying his head in my lap. "I couldn't stop him...I couldn't do anything...he chained me to the bed....and he...he..." It took a moment for this to register in my brain. I wrapped my arms around my brother. Trying to comfort him. "Shhhh...bro......" I said, my voice soothing; but in fact I saw red. How dare he hurt Solo! Solo, who was so strong, who had taught me to smile at everything...how he dare take that away... "I won't let him touch you again; I swear it, with Shinigami as my witness HE WILL NOT TOUCH YOU AGAIN..."  
  
True to my word, the merchant didn't touch Solo again. The Gods had played us another curve...the next morning Solo was sick. Three day's later; the ship doctor proclaimed that Solo had the plague. The fools beatings had weakened my friends system, he was dieing, and yet....and yet, they did not let I'm rest. No they forced him to work; whipping him when he fell behind. They would work him up until the very instant he died. Every night I hoped with every fiber of my being, that they would die. I prayed to Shinigami, the God of Death, the only god who seemed to listen to me now, twisted as his answers sometimes were. Again, the dark god surprised me. Instead of death, he brought me hope...  
  
"Hey Duo," Wufei whispered one morning on deck; "look..." he pointed to the south. There no more then a couple miles off, was an island with tall sheer cliffs.  
  
"Aye, get a good look lads, this is the closest you'll ever see the Dark Isle." One of the crewmen said, "No ship who ventures to close returned alive..."  
  
The Dark Isle, I had not heard of it before, but it was land...  
  
That night I slept very lightly, my dreams troubled me. I dreamt of the Dark Lord, Shinigami, that night. His black cloak and flaming blood red hair billowing out behind him. His emerald d green eyes glowed in the darkness; he reached out on hand to me, a single perfect pale hand. My mind screamed at me not to except it, to do so would be to die, but my dream self did not listen, I took Death's hand. Together we flew over the ocean, away from the ship; the island suddenly loomed in the distance. Onward we flew; we reached the island, but didn't stop. We flew between two crossed boulders, through the jungle, under a water fall, and into a cave. Finally we stopped; I could feel the press of rock around us. Shinigami smiled at me; he appeared to be no older then myself physically, yet his eyes were ageless. In his right hand he held a long eerie scythe; he pointed it toward the ceiling; brilliant green light exploded from it, luminating the darkness. We were in a cavern of crystal, it was beautiful.  
  
"Find this place..." Shinigami whispered, his voice was like a cool north breeze at night, "the guardians will challenge you; when they do, tell them that the Dark one sends you. The old one will know what that means. Take this; it will help you on your journey..." He reached his hand out to me, in it was a black leather pouch with a draw-string long enough to fit over my head. I looked at the god; I wanted to ask him why he was doing this...but my body would not corporate. "Now it is time for you to return." The island faded into blackness...  
  
~*~  
  
Thank you for all that reviewed; I think that was the most reviews I've gotten at once. ^_^ *does happy dance* though that does not mean that just because you reviewed last time you don't have to now.....I still crave reviews...so please review...or you shall never know what was in the pouch! Bwhahahahahahaha! 


	4. The Escape

Sorry that it has taken me so long to post folks...my computer sorta got fed up with my abuse and crashed on me mutters something about damned 'puters but on the bright side; while my internet wasn't working I did get a couple more chappies written...  
  
I unfortunately don't own the G-boys; if I did I would be much happier, wallowing in money. But I don't so don't bother suing; I don't have anything, I'm a poor college student people! Unless of course you want a couple blood thirsty dust bunnies....I got plenty of those. Comments are always appreciated....craved actually. REVIEWS!!! I NEED REVIEWS. Uh...sorry....I'm ok now. So please, review; let me know what you liked, what you didn't, the good, the bad and the ugly basically. However flames will be laughed at, so I wouldn't even bother.  
  
Chapter 3 The Escape  
  
I woke with a start, sitting bolt upright; it took me several seconds to realize where I was. Finally, the soft snores of sixty other slaves, and the labored breathing of my best friend reminded me where I was. Hell. I lay back down, trying to force myself to get a few more hours of sleep; my internal clock said that it was only four in the morning; the crew wouldn't be up for another hour. I moved my hand across my chest; something softer then my callused hand moved with it. I blinked. What the hell? I picked up my hand, from it dangled the black leather pouch that the Dark Lord had given me in my dream. Once again I sat bolt upright in bed, starring at the little cloth. It was impossible... Against my better judgment I lay back down on my side, and opened the bag. Inside were two pieces of twisted metal...lock picks; and a small black polished stone. I picked up the stone; it was warm to the touch. A sound outside told me that the crew was moving. Quickly I shoved the picks and the stone back into the bag, and looped it around my neck, hiding it in the folds of my tunic. So the Dark God wanted me to escape, hmm, alright, I wasn't one to throw away a blessing from a god, no matter which one it was from...  
  
That day consisted mainly of planning my escape for that night. It had to be tonight; tomorrow, we would be to away from the island. I glanced at the sky, a storm was brewing. Another warped blessing from the Gods.  
  
It was night when the storm hit; and hit it did. The ship lurched beneath my feet as I moved around the deck, attempting to secure the different lines. All the while, my mind was racing.....how could I use this to my advantage? I knew that this storm was not natural. The crewmen had said as much. This was not the type of storm for this region, nor this season... This storm was more akin to the destructive hurricanes and typhoons of the south, rather then the squalls that happened here in the northern region. When lightning struck the main mast; I was the only one who didn't panic, instead I felt a wicked smile curve my lips. This was what I was looking for, something to distract the men from the slaves; and thus, from MY doings. Quickly, as not to waste time, I threw myself over to where Solo battled to stay standing; battling not only the wind and surf, but the illness that ate at his body. I wrapped my arm around his waist and dragged him under the stairs that led to the upper deck. "Duo...?" Solo whispered, his voice distant and sleepy. I looked at my friend and brother; the lights were on....but no one seemed to be home. Quickly, I drew out the lock picks that the Dark Lord had given me; and thanking the gods who gave me steady hands; undid mine and Solo's chains. Out of the corner of my eye I caught a flash of golden bronze skin in a flash of lightning. Wufei stood a few feet from our hiding place; unaffected by the storm....in fact he seemed to be enjoying it. Without stopping to think, I lunged out of my hole and grabbed Wufei's arm, dragging him under the stair,  
  
"What are you doing?" Wufei asked; as I started working on his chains, I had them off in an instant. Wufei starred at me, his mouth opening and closing, surprise momentarily stealing his voice. I put a hand to his mouth; "Quiet 'fei, we're getting out of here." I stated, removing my hand.  
  
"And exactly how do you think to manage that?" Wufei asked, growling slightly. I grinned; finding what I wanted in a quick flash of lightning. "Come on!" I yelled; grabbing Solo and plunging into the wall of water.  
  
"Damned baka!" Wufei growled, quickly following the dark haired fool. My target was a small life boat tied down to the boat deck. Moving swiftly, I all but threw Solo into the boat; setting my brother as carefully as possible, then I began working at the knots that held the boat in place on the deck. "MOVE BAKA!" Wufei shouted over the boom of thunder; in a flash of lightning I saw Wufei led something in his hand, raising it above his head....the lightning glinted off the curve of metal as Wufei slashed through the rope in one smooth motion. I jumped into the boat as Wufei slashed a second cord...  
  
"HEY!" A voice cried; we had been seen. Wufei leap into the boat, handing me the short sword as he did so. I sliced through the third tie; the man was closer, moving quickly despite the water that crashed onto the deck. Suddenly the ship lurched as a large wave slammed into the side, water flooded the deck. The rushing water hit the life boat just as I sliced through the last tie; the lifeboat lurched and shuttered as the wave carried it over the railing and into the black water of the ocean.... 


	5. Landing on the Dark Isle

I unfortunately don't own the G-boys; if I did I would be much happier, wallowing in money. But I don't so don't bother suing; I don't have anything, I'm a poor college student people! Unless of course you want a couple blood thirsty dust bunnies....I got plenty of those. Comments are always appreciated....craved actually. REVIEWS!!! I NEED REVIEWS. Uh...sorry....I'm ok now. So please, review; let me know what you liked, what you didn't, the good, the bad and the ugly basically. However flames will be laughed at, so I wouldn't even bother.  
  
Chapter 4 The Dark Isle  
  
I woke to a bright light in my eyes....absently I turned over, trying to get away from the sunlight that peaked through my window.....  
  
Suddenly and quite violently, reality reinserted itself and I remembered what had happened. I quickly sat up, and instantly wished I hadn't. My vision spun, and my stomach rebelled; I barely managed to fall out of the boat before the entire contents of my stomach came up.  
  
"Duo...? Please tell me that's you...." Wufei's voice asked, a bit shaky, from inside the boat. I swallowed several times, my throat and eyes burned, tears ran down my face; "Yeah....least I think so..." I said, my voice trembled slightly.  
  
"Duo...?" Wufei's voice said again, steadier this time, "Why are we not moving?" I blinked, suddenly realizing that I was not kneeling on the wooden planks of a ship, but on the soft grains of pale white sand. "Because, 'fei....we aren't at sea anymore...." I absently raked my hand through the pale grains, allowing it to slide between my fingers; my mind unable to grasp the idea that we were on land...that we might actually be free....  
  
What?!?" Wufei yelped sitting up quickly. "Blessed be; we're on land....but where?"  
  
"The Dark Isle probably..." I stated, my voice still a little distant, my mind still had not grasped the idea that we were free. Yes, I know, I can be slow sometimes...  
  
"If you too are done....I need to go pee, and I can't do that until you get off Wufei..." Solo's said, his voice was soft but stronger then it had been for weeks; "Besides, they might come looking for us..."  
  
I climbed quickly to my feet; Wufei hurriedly clamored out of the boat; then we both helped Solo get out of the boat. Once his feet touched solid earth, Solo's knees buckled. He knelt, leaning forward and grabbing two fist fulls of wet sand. "Thank the Gods," he muttered softly. I suppressed a snort. Gods indeed; only one god helped us, the others would have left us to die...but I did not inform my brother of this fact; I did not want to hurt him by telling him that there weren't any 'gods' only one; the God of Death....  
  
Wrapping one of Solo's arms around my shoulder; we moved along the beach; staying near the tree-line for shade and cover. Wufei carried the short sword, holding it like he knew how to use the weapon. It was a slow pace; we stopped frequently to rest and right off the bat, Wufei found us food. The food was in the form a fruit, a small round orange fruit. "It's called a tangerine," Wufei said, "Peel the outer skin off and eat the fruit, like this" He demonstrated by carving out a hole in the orange skin with his thumbnail and pulled away the skin; I copied his technique and quickly found myself holding a small lumpy orange ball. I glanced at Wufei and saw him rip the tan-ger-ine? in half along the white stringy lines that wrapped around the fruit. Again I copied the action, and the ball came apart revealing small half moon sections. Wufei peeled one of these sections off and popped it into his mouth; I followed suit. "Becwareful, some hawe sweeds..." Wufei muttered around a mouthful of fruit.  
  
"What?" I asked as I bit down; my teeth hit something hard that crunched; it hurt my teeth a bit.  
  
"I said, be careful some have seeds..." Wufei repeated.  
  
"Now he tells me..." I mutter, spitting out the seed to try again, this time I got nothing but fruit. And let me tell you what; it was wonderful! It was sweet and juicy and absolutely delightful. I inhaled the rest of my fruit, and quickly peeled one for Solo, who rested under the shade of a palm tree.  
  
It was late in the day when we rounded a bend; suddenly our adrenaline raced just as our heart plummeted; there in a cove, was the merchant's ship; a group was camped on the beach.  
  
"You think they're lookin' for us?" I asked, moving further into the tree- line for cover. Wufei followed, "It's probable," he answered.  
  
"Then perhaps we should get out of here?" Solo stated, his voice barely a whisper; Wufei and I exchanged glances and without comment; Wufei slung Solo's other arm around his shoulder and we started back the way we came. All too soon we saw the torches as two sailors walked down the beach toward us. With the ship behind us and men in front; we went the only direction left to us; into the tangled vines of the jungle... Hoping, and dare I say, praying, that we would not be seen, we would not be caught; not when we had only just tasted freedom... 


	6. The Guardians

I unfortunately don't own the G-boys; if I did I would be much happier, wallowing in money. But I don't so don't bother suing; I don't have anything, I'm a poor college student people! Unless of course you want a couple blood thirsty dust bunnies....I got plenty of those. Comments are always appreciated....craved actually. REVIEWS!!! I NEED REVIEWS. Uh...sorry....I'm ok now. So please, review; let me know what you liked, what you didn't, the good, the bad and the ugly basically. However flames will be laughed at, so I wouldn't even bother.  
  
Chapter 5 The Guardians  
  
We were on the move almost all night. Every time we found a decent spot to settle down, we would hear the sounds of men in the bushes. Around twilight; one of the men found our trail. A cry went up and suddenly we had the sailors on us like a pack of hunting dogs...and they were about as noisy too. Both Wufei and I were tired; exhausted; on the verge of collapsing; could barely move our muscles....yet when that cry went up, we all but picked Solo off the ground and carried him in our attempts to get away. You would be amazed at what one can do on an adrenaline rush. We raced as fast as we could through the dense undergrowth of the forest, and at the same time trying desperately to make as little of a trail as possible to be followed.  
  
Suddenly, there was no longer any earth beneath our scrambling feet...we plunged down, down...it seemed like forever....then SPLASH! I surfaced, coughing and sputtering, shaking water from my eyes. I glanced around; I couldn't see anything through the mist that surrounded us. "Duo..." I barely heard Wufei's voice over the roar in my ears...  
  
No, not in my ears; in my search for Wufei I had turned completely around; before me, roaring like a thousand lions; was a waterfall... About twenty feet away, Wufei crouched on a rock; attempting to haul the sick Solo onto the rock as well. I swam over to them; climbing onto the rock next to Wufei.  
  
"You two ok?" I asked, pulling myself up. "Yeah; but I think Solo's hurt, he hasn't said anything, and he hasn't opened his eyes..."  
  
I leaned over my friend; I could barely hear the rasp of Solo's breath over the roar of the water. Solo was indeed, in pain. I stood up and quickly looked around. Solo needed some place to rest someplace dry and safe; the pack of human dogs couldn't be that far behind us... From my vantage point; I could just barely make out the ocean, and what looked like two crossed boulders.... In a flash, an image of the dream I had had came rushing back to me. Under two boulders; through the forest, and under a waterfall...  
  
"Come on!" I cried, "Behind the water fall..." Wufei didn't ask questions; I had gotten them that far...  
  
Solo ended up being too weak to walk; so Wufei and I ended up carrying him...correction, I ended up carrying him; since; and I quote; "he's my friend, I am the tallest, and Wufei needed to have his arms free in case he needed to use the sword...did I know how to use a sword? No he didn't think so, so it was my job to help Solo and he would lead..." Pushy little brat...  
  
Anyway, with what little strength I had left, I lifted Solo onto my back and carried him piggyback-style; while Wufei lead the way. We moved behind the waterfall, what little light that had been visible winked out behind the crashing water. Wufei ran his hand along the wall, suddenly he stopped.  
  
"Here..." he called, as he stood next to the opening of what might have been a cave; but at the moment was nothing more then a pitch black hole. "Do we have flint, or something to make a torch?" I asked, knowing that we did not; Wufei shook his head, "Nope."  
  
"Shit," I growled, "What now?"  
  
Wufei grinned, holding out his hand a white mage light appeared in his palm, "We go in."  
  
I starred at the back of Wufei's ragged shirt with awe...he was a mage...a bloody mage....  
  
The time passed slowly; at first my mind buzzed with the realization that Wufei was a mage....but eventually everything spiraled down to me concentrating on nothing more then putting one foot in front of the other. Pick left foot up....move forward...put down...pick right foot up...move forward...put down...... On and on and on we went, deeper and deeper into the earth. I could almost feel the pressure of tons and tons of rocks pressing down upon us...did I mention I was a bit claustrophobic?? Just as I thought I would go crazy, breaking down; crying and blubbering like a baby...the tunnel opened up into a vast room. Wufei's light reflected off hundreds and thousand of crystals turning the ceiling and walls into sparkling diamonds...  
  
"Great merciful mother..." Wufei breathed, "What is this place?"  
  
"Who isssss thissssss who disssssturbsssss the crysssstal chamber???" a low voice hissed from the shadows.  
  
"TRESPASSORS!" another voice thundered. "HUNTERS!"  
  
Carefully I lay Solo on the ground; Wufei immediately came to stand under him, mage light in one hand sword held ready in the other.  
  
"We are NOT hunters...in fact we are being hunted ourselves. We seek only shelter in the cave to escape our pursuers and tend to our sick friend..." I said, proud that my voice didn't shake....much. Then I remembered something; "Would you happen to the Guardians?"  
  
"HUNTERS! THEY SEEK TO KILL US AND TAKE OUR TREASURE!" another voice roared.  
  
"NO!" I yelled over the angry growls and hisses coming from the shadows, "We aren't hunters, the Dark Lord sent us!" Silence followed my statement.  
  
"The Dark Lord sssent you?" yet a fourth voice asked, sounding like a purr; I was willing to bet it was female. "Do you have proof of thisss claim, little human?"  
  
"Yes..." I faltered unsure how to address these beings, instead I untied the bag the God of Death had given me, spilling its contents into my palm and holding it up for...whoever it was to see. The stone the Lord had given me caught the light from the mage-light and began to glow. I starred at it; the black stone lit up it seemed to have to have a lightning storm at its center.  
  
"Milady," a fifth voice said, clearly masculine and quite deep, "There are more intruders sniffing around the falls; shall I...er...get rid of them?"  
  
"Yessss," The one addressed as 'milady', purred, her voice sounding like wind chimes in a lite summer breeze. "It issss true then; you have been sssent by the Dark Lord....why?"  
  
"I know not M-milady...." I answered, "I was merely told to come here, that I would find help..."  
  
"I ssssee...in that cassse, help you sssshall have." Suddenly the room filled with light, temporarily blinding me with the suddenness of it. I blinked away the spots in my eyes; then starred in amazement....the speakers...they were all....Dragons....and not just any dragons BLACK DRAGONS..... the rarest form of the dragon race, thought to have died out centuries ago.  
  
"Oh my..." Wufei whispered, awe stricken as well. They were huge! Easily thirty feet from tail to snout; at least thirteen or fourteen feet high; every inch of them compact muscle. Their noses were long and narrow like that of a lizards; a crown of horns atop their heads, that tapered off into long delicate looking necks. A rustle of leathery wings drew our attention to what appeared to be an older dragon; her scales beginning to turn grey.  
  
"thisss way humansssss...." She purred, then lumbered off; moving with the grace of an old cat.  
  
"oh my "was definitely an understatement....

THE END

for the moment....

Well folks thats all for now, hopefully I willl have more chappies for you soon. Thanks to all who have reviewed up till now...Mara202, Windy River, camillian, Garen, karrafear, crysania fay, jander, makeyourselfduo, and emerald wolf. If I have forgotten anybody , my apologies...

Nameless Waif: now you know whats in the pouch ; and don't worry bout duo's hair it'll be back!!!

Emerald Wolf: It's about time you read one of my fics girl!!! Now you need to wade through the rest of them and gimme your opinions...

Thanks again folks, I'll have a new chapter for you as fast as I can!


End file.
